Buying My Forever Wife novel Chapter 299

The entire night passed without a single trace of Ivy.

Alaric sat in the back of his car through the grueling hours, his heart trapped in a suffocating grip. His handsome face was drawn, pale, and utterly exhausted.

Leo Archer brought him breakfast, speaking with gentle concern.

"Boss, you need to eat something. The second we get any news about Mrs. Foster, I will let you know immediately."

Alaric couldn't stomach a single bite.

The terrifying thought that Ivy might never come back haunted him.

As for the people who drove her to this, he wanted nothing more than to tear them apart piece by piece.

He looked at Leo. "The Sawyers, the Vaughans... are they dealt with?"

Leo nodded solemnly.

"The police have them all in custody. Beatrice's eldest son, the one working at The District Administration who gave them the cover to act so recklessly? I had our contacts at the top strip his position and have him detained as well."

Alaric waved a hand, dismissing Leo so he could be alone.

Even though those monsters were locked away, it didn't extinguish the roaring inferno of guilt and rage in his chest.

If he hadn't driven out to her village to surprise her, he never would have discovered the horrifying nightmare Ivy had lived in her entire life.

He finally understood the truth behind their hasty marriage. She had only demanded the $200,000 settlement to pay off her parents and escape being sold to Silas Thorne, that disabled billionaire.

Her life had been a constant, grueling battle for survival.

The moment she was born, her parents had dumped her on her grandmother and ignored her existence.

Then, they dumped two younger sisters on her to raise.

She was barely two or three years older than them, yet she carried the financial burden of their tuition, as well as her brother's.

And then, Gemma was diagnosed with severe leukemia.

In a heartbeat, Alaric finally understood why Ivy was so desperate for money.

Without it, how could she have possibly kept her siblings alive?

She was only twenty-two years old.

In those twenty-two short years, she had endured more suffering and exhaustion than he had in his entire thirty-two years of life.

Alaric couldn't even fathom how she had survived it all.

He just hadn't realized it until she was violently ripped away.

Alaric hadn't closed his eyes for a second, nor had he taken a single sip of water.

He was terrified.

What if Ivy truly never came back?

His heart was hollowed out by the pain.

He couldn't accept losing her like this.

She was his wife.

Even though they had kept their marriage a secret from the world, over the past few months, she had quietly become the center of his universe.

He was used to having a wife. He loved knowing she was waiting for him at home. He loved her random texts, her little bursts of temper, her vibrant presence.

And Stella desperately needed her.

If Ivy was gone forever, how was he supposed to tell his daughter?

Alaric looked up at Leo, his throat tight with agony.